Identity Crisis
by SaturnNights
Summary: Sonic The Hedgehog, a down and out writer, now making one last ditch effort to get his life together, creating the alias who would soon be known to the world as Shadow The Hedgehog. But in doing this, may come at a price.
1. Rejected

**Hey everyone. This story came to me after a conversation I had with a friend and I'd like to thank him for the sudden inspiration.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Sonic walked down the streets of Station Square, dragging his bag along the sidewalk.

He rubbed his eyes, bloodshot from lack of sleep and stress.

He made his way into his apartment, only to be met by the landlord, Jet.

"You're two months late on rent." Jet pointed out.

"I know, I know, I just got back from an interview and-." Sonic started, only to be interrupted by Jet.

"I don't wanna hear it kid, either you come up with rent by the end of the week or your sorry butt is on the street!" Jet exclaimed, slamming the door behind him.

Sonic sighed, slumping onto his couch, holding his head in his hands.

He looked up, grabbing the mail on his nightstand, opening each letter with both a sense of anticipation and negative inevitability.

Opening the first letter, he read it aloud.

"Dear Mr. Hedgehog, while we appreciate your submission, we are sorry to inform you that we must decline your works at this time." Sonic read, crumpling up the letter without even having to read the rest.

Opening the second letter, he read once more.

"Mr. Hedgehog, we are sorry to inform you that your submission has not met the standards of our publishing firm." He read, once again crumpling the letter without having to finish.

Opening the final letter, he read once more.

"Mr. Hedgehog, we are sorry to-." He started to read, only knowing all to well the outcome.

He tore the letter up, throwing the pieces to the floor.

Inside, Sonic began to grow even more frustrated.

Almost a year of writing and in that same time, countless rejections.

Sonic opened his bag, took out the manuscript and threw it against the wall.

The pages scattered all across the floor, Sonic stumbling his way down the hall to the bathroom.

Sonic splashed his face with water repeatedly, trying to wash off the discomfort.

Finally, he looked himself in the mirror.

He looked into the eyes of his reflection, taking in the sight of the disheveled hedgehog he had become.

He reminisced, thinking back to when he first started.

His dreams of being a published author still bright.

But over time, rejection letter after rejection letter.

His confidence had waned.

True he hadn't been the most composed before, but now he had become a wreck and his name was synonymous with failure among the companies.

There was no way he would get published with them knowing who he was.

Sonic debated in his mind as he stared at his reflection on what to do.

What could he do?

His name had become literature poison.

That was when he had the idea.

What could be known as one of the most ingenious ideas ever, or, one of the most idiotic.

He rushed out of the bathroom, grabbing the manuscript and placing it back in order.

With a grin on his face, he headed out of his apartment, running down to the little convenience store on the corner.

With what little pocket change he had left, he paid for two boxes of dye and a comb.

When he returned to his apartment, he picked up the phone, dialing a publishing firm he had yet to apply for.

"Hello?" The receptionist said.

Sonic turned his head away, clearing his throats to speak in a deeper register, to disguise his voice.

"Yes, I'd like to make an appointment for my work to receive publishing." He told her.

"Very well, we do have an opening for the day after tomorrow, does that suit you?" She asked.

"Yes, that will be just fine." He said, with a smirk.

"Now, what name shall I place the interview under?" She asked him.

Sonic hesitated for a moment, trying to think of the perfect alias.

Remembering his first work, he took the first name from the protagonist of his first unpublished story.

"Shadow, Shadow The Hedgehog."


	2. Intimidation

**Welcome back everyone. Just wanted to thank you all for the reception so far. With that, let's get back to it.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

 **AGES Publishing Company.**

The doors opened, a figure walked in, giving off a mysterious and intriguing aura.

Everyone's attention turned to the one in question, the only sound heard being his footsteps as all had grown silent.

He was a hedgehog, stern looking, walking with a demeanor so cold, and the look to match.

He was dressed in a slim black suit, complimenting his dark fur, completed by red streaks in his combed up spines.

He approached the main desk, the woman working there, both intimidated and interested.

"N-Name please." She stuttered.

"Shadow, Shadow The Hedgehog." He told her, his deep voice sending chills down their spines.

The woman grabbed the list, not looking away for a moment as she stared into his piercing red eyes,

She knew she had to look away to check for the appointment time, her movements slow, looking as if she were shivering.

"Yes, your appointment is in about 10 minutes, floor 4, second door to the left." She said.

"Thank you." Shadow said, walking to the elevators.

Before reaching them, he turned around and looked at the woman, catching her attention.

"What's your name?" He asks.

"A-Amy." She says, surprised by the question.

He looks at her, giving her a smirk then enters the elevator.

When he reached the fourth floor, he walked down the hall, stopping at the office Amy had mentioned.

 _"Nack The Weasel." He read the name printed on the glass._

Shadow opened the door to see a weasel sitting at his desk, looking uninterested.

"Name." The weasel said blandly.

"Shadow." Shadow said.

"Take a seat." Nack told him.

Shadow pulled up a chair, placing the manuscript on Nack's desk.

Nack looked up, putting on his reading glasses and began to read the contents.

However, Shadow raised an eyebrow as Nack skimmed through the pages, even flipping past at least twenty at a time.

"It's garbage, take it somewhere else." Nack said, tossing the manuscript back to him.

 _"Great, now what am I gonna do?" Sonic thought._

He started to stress before coming to a conclusion.

 _"What would Shadow do?" He thought._

The momentarily lapse faded as Shadow stood up, placing the manuscript back on Nack's desk, glaring at Nack as he slid it towards him.

"I suggest you reconsider your decision sir." Shadow said, his tone growing darker and more authoritative.

Nack began to sweat from intimidation, but knew he was the one in control.

"Listen buddy, I don't have time to read every hack on the streets story, you ain't getting published here, got it?" Nack told him, trying to retort but his voice cracking from nervousness at the end.

Shadow chuckled at this.

"Now, you listen to me, I'm tired of dealing with all this, so either you read my manuscript willingly or…I make you." Shadow grabbed him by the collar.

Nack gulped, not seeing many options and the ones he was given were not to his liking.

"I can call security you know?" Nack pointed out.

"Go ahead, that should be a whole lot of fun." Shadow said with a wicked grin on his face.

He let Nack go, letting him fall back down into his chair.

Nack quickly started speed reader the manuscript, only stopping at the halfway point.

"Alright, it's decent, what do you want for it?" Nack asked.

"Simple, all I want is for this company to distribute the novel, I retain full rights and we split the profits eighty, twenty in my favor." Shadow made his offer.

"You really are crazy." Nack insulted him.

"No way anyone would take that deal." Nack said.

Shadow just looked at him, the glare of his red eyes making Nack tremble with a fear he never even knew existed.

"Of course, this is how the business works, compromise, am I right?" Nack tried to appease him.

"We split the profits right down the middle, fifty, fifty." Nack countered.

"I'm not an idiot, Weasel, seventy, thirty." Shadow countered.

"Sixty, forty, final offer." Nack said.

Shadow remained silent for a moment, before letting a small sound of laughter.

It was lifeless and yet so odd.

Shadow stretched out his hand for Nack to shake.

"Deal." Shadow said.

Nack had a look of relief, as if his life had been spared.

Nack went to his computer editing the contract to the revised settlements they had come to.

"I want to be payed in advance." Shadow said.

Nack quickly complied, pulling out a check and wrote down the necessary requirements.

He handed the check to Shadow as Shadow wrote down his signature on the contract.

Shadow handed back the contract to Nack.

"A pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Hedgehog." Nack said.

Shadow nodded with a grin and exited the office, his grin remaining all the way on his walk home.

* * *

 **Later.**

Sonic had made his way back to his apartment, removing the color contacts he had kept from an old Halloween costume and rinsed off the dye from his fur, turning his quills back to their normal form.

As the water flowed down, thoughts ran through his mind of the events that took place and his actions.

 _"Maybe I went too far, that was kind overboard." Sonic thought._

 _"The guy was a jerk and he had it coming, besides, we all make a ton of money and you finally get what you want, no harm done." A voice in the back of his mind convinced him._

 _"Yeah, you're right, speaking of which." Sonic thought._

After Sonic dried off, he went downstairs, entering Jet's room.

"What is it now, Hedgehog?" Jet said, mindlessly staring at his television.

Sonic smirked, slamming down a pile of cash on Jet's table.

Jet just sat there, wide eyed.

"My rent." Sonic said, smugly.

Sonic closed the door behind him, strutting back upstairs.

Thanks to his alter ego, he had already accomplished more than he ever did as himself.

So the question was, what would his next move be?


	3. Changes

**Hey everyone, welcome back and right now I'm here with a short transition chapter. With Sonic now posing as Shadow, where can this possibly lead? Let's find out.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

AGES publishing had pulled out all the stops in marketing the album.

Pre order copies had sold out within hours and Shadow The Hedgehog, had now become a bonafide author.

Outside their headquarters, they held a big celebration in honor of one million copies already pre ordered.

The press was invited as well as everyone who purchased the book, with Shadow there ready to give personal autographs.

He reveled in the endless cheers and applause from the crowd, treating it as if he were some idol to them.

He took a bow, then started to sign the covers of their books, his ego preventing him from leaving one unnoticed.

Then, in the next few moments, it was all a blur.

Images came to mind, he paraded around town like a lunatic, driving his new car around with no concern for anyone else's safety, multiple women throwing themselves at him and finally an all out brawl as he was knocked in the jaw.

Sonic awoke with a splitting headache.

His body was covered head to toe in patches of black dye, dirt and a strange red substance he quickly identified wasn't his own.

 _"What the?" He thought._

Looking to his side, he saw multiple empty bottles and a lump underneath the blanket.

Lifting it, he saw a familiar pink hedgehog.

"Amy." He said in a panic before covering up his mouth.

Amy turned in her sleep, Sonic backing away slowly, as he feared waking her up.

He crept to the bathroom to wash up, looking at his disheveled figure in the mirror.

He was disgusted at what he saw, a five o'clock shadow, his quills out of shape and his breath reeking so strong it could knock someone out.

He quickly grabbed the mouthwash, rinsing his mouth out.

As he tried to fix himself up, he jumped in surprise as he heard a knock at his bathroom door.

"Shadow, it's Amy." She called from the other side of the door.

Sonic went to answer but stopped himself as his real voice came out.

Clearing his throat again, he disguised his voice as Shadow's again.

"Yes, Amy?" Shadow said.

"I have to get going, I'm sorry to dash off but, here." Amy apologized, slipping a little torn off piece of paper under the door.

Sonic picked it up, seeing the words, call me, written on it with what he presumed was her phone number.

Sonic smiled a bit as he placed it on the counter, getting back to cleaning himself up for the day.

Once he went outside he picked up the newspaper.

He read it over like normal, however one detail would catch his eye as soon as he saw it and when he did, he nearly passed out.

The nausea took effect as he repeated it in his head.

The book signing was on Saturday, the newspapers date had the Friday of the next week printed on the cover.

 _"That's Impossible!" Sonic thought, a little panicked._

More memories came flooding back as he started to remember more and more about those days.

For those days, Sonic didn't exist at all, only Shadow.

Sonic finally had what he wanted, but of course, like everything, it would come at a price.

A price that no one would ever expect.


	4. Reflections

_Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Sonic put on his jacket and walked down to the local park, still jittery from what had happened.

At the moment, he needed a sense of something real, something far away from his alternate life as Shadow.

Taking deep breaths to relax, he threw a stone onto the lake, watching it skim across all the way to the other side.

He smiled, remembering when he used to hang out with his friends down by the lake in his hometown.

 _"Those were the days." He thought._

No stress, no worries and no complications, life was just life to them.

Stepping towards the lake, he looked down at his reflection, a sense of solace washing over him.

However, just a few seconds after, the reflection started to lose shape, distorting right in front of him as ripples in the water formed from out of nowhere.

He kept looking down, curiously awaiting the waters to take their shape once more.

Sure enough, the water calmed down, his reflection no longer distorted.

Taking a good look, he fell back in shock at what he saw.

Catching his breath, he slowly crawled towards the lake, to see if his eyes had been playing tricks on him.

Looking once more, he covered his mouth, trying to hold back his screams of anguish.

He no longer saw his own reflection, the one who's reflection was staring right at him, was none other, than Shadow the Hedgehog.

Growing frustrated, he slammed his fist into water, running off to get away.

 _"It's all in your head, it's just stress, you're still shaken up from being out cold too long, you just gotta relax, man." He tried to convince himself._

He ran all the way to the café across the street from his apartment, taking refuge in a booth.

He sat down, still shaking violently, his feelings of illness growing.

He tried to keep himself still, as a waitress came by and took his order.

When she came back with the drink, she looked at him with a disgusted expression on her face which she did a poor job of trying to hide out of courtesy.

Sonic wondered why she looked at him that way since he had just cleaned himself up.

Looking down at his coffee he noticed something beside the cup, strands of fur.

Sonic reached up to his quills in a panic.

When he lowered his hand, he gasped a little in pure shock as he held what looked to be fur.

But what struck him as stranger were the blue stains on his fingers.

Examining it closely, he recognized what it was.

A blue variant of the dye he used to create Shadow.

Not being able to take it anymore, he rushed to the bathroom, locked the door behind him, kicked open the stall door and proceeded to let out his sickness.

It seemed endless as even people outside could hear the sounds and wailing from pain coming from him.

After what seemed like hours to him when in reality it was just a few minutes, he finally stopped and collapsed onto the bathroom floor.

He reached his hand up and slammed it down into a tile, dragging himself across the bathroom floor to the sink.

Using whatever strength he had left, he lifted himself up, letting the water run for a second before rinsing his face and hands off, seeing the quills and blue dye go down the drain as he did.

Fearing the worst, he once again slowly looked to his reflection.

Sonic looked at himself, only it wasn't him.

His fur had been replaced by darker black fur.

His eyes, once shining green, were now glaring red.

Shadow looked at him, smirking at him, freaking Sonic out as he knew he wasn't smirking.

After a few moments of silence, Shadow leaned towards the mirror, causing Sonic to lean towards it too.

They were eye to eye, Shadow baring his fangs as he drew him closer.

"Hi Sonic." The reflection said.

Sonic flew back, hitting the wall.

Sonic trembled in terror, backing away into a corner, cowering in horror, covering is face with his jacket.

A knock on the door surprised him, causing Sonic to look up.

"Hey, buddy, you alright in there?" Someone outside asked.

Sonic's breathing had not stalled.

Sonic took his time to stand back up, seeing his reflection out of the corner of his eye, he saw himself.

He approached the mirror, to see he was his old self again, fully intact.

Sonic exited the bathroom to see a crowd staring at him.

Sonic kept his face low and his line of sight down to the ground to avoid the awkward eye contact.

He grabbed his coffee and returned home, none the wiser as to what was happening.


	5. Doctor's Orders

_Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Sonic sat in the waiting room chair, his leg shaking uncontrollably, the sound of the clock's ticking growing louder and louder with each passing second.

"Mr. Hedgehog." A nurse called for him.

Sonic sat up and walked over to her.

"Dr. Prower will see you now." She told him and showed him the way to his office.

"Thank you." Sonic said.

As he walked to the office, images of the previous few nights came back to him, scattered memories laying dormant till something made them appear.

 _"If anyone can help me, he can." Sonic thought, hoping he could cure whatever was happening to him._

Opening the door, he was welcomed by a familiar fox, greeting him with a smile.

"Tails, how ya been buddy?" Sonic asked, shaking his friends hand.

"I've been doing great, Mina and I just got engaged." Tails told him.

"Woah, congratulations, man." Sonic said.

"How about you, seems like you wouldn't call me unless something was wrong?" Tails asked.

Sonic felt bad hearing those words, because he knew they were true.

He hadn't contacted his best friend in years and just now, out of nowhere, he was asking for his help.

 _"It's his job to help people." Sonic tried to justify his actions._

"Yeah, a lot has been happening recently, things have been changing and I think it's starting to get to me." Sonic told him.

"How so?" Tails asked, taking a seat.

Sonic thought the situation through for a moment, wanting to explain it to Tails without giving away his secret.

"I've been seeing things, things that aren't really there." Sonic said.

"Like what?" Tails asked.

"I'm not sure, it's all blurry." Sonic lied.

Tails jotted it down in his notes and asked Sonic to continue.

"Well, lately I feel like I haven't been in my own body anymore, everything feels so distant and once, I fell asleep, I woke up days later and I couldn't remember a thing." Sonic said, his tone growing more panicked.

Tails seemed to have a diagnosis already but it seemed like Sonic had more to say.

"The memories are coming back now, in bits and pieces, but still, I did things during those days I wasn't aware of, that I had no control over, what do you think is happening?" Sonic explained, hoping Tails would have a solution.

Tails jotted down a last note, then looked Sonic straight in the eyes.

"Tell me, physically, did you feel any different before any of this happened?" Tails asked.

"No, same as always." Sonic said.

"Have you taken any substances?" Tails asked.

"No!" Sonic said, offended.

"Well then, in my professional opinion, the problem itself, is psychological." Tails told him.

"Tell me, these changes in your life, what are they?" Tails asked.

"Well, recently I've made quite a bit of money." Sonic said, going around a few details.

"Really, must have helped out with the rent?" Tails figured.

"Yeah, it did." Sonic said with a chuckle.

"What else?" Tails asked.

"Well, there's also, this woman." Sonic said.

"Affection at first does put a lot of pressure on some people." Tails told him.

"Yeah, I guess." Sonic said, scratching the back of his head.

"So, are you worried about your situation with her?" Tails asked.

"No, it's just that, I've changed a lot too, it's like when I'm around her and everyone else, it's like I'm a different person." Sonic partially told the truth.

Tails nodded in understanding.

"Many people create methods to adapt in social situations and for expectations, it seems your problem stems from that concern and has manifested itself to the point where even you aren't aware of your own actions, a double life, if you will. Tails concluded.

Sonic grew nervous as Tails was hitting a little too close to home.

"So, what do you think I should do?" Sonic asked.

"The answer is simple, take some time away, take a break from that lifestyle, try to get back on your feet, otherwise, these effects could only get worse." Tails told him.

Sonic thought about it, figuring it wasn't a bad idea, he just needed to not stress over it for a little while, put his Shadow persona to rest for the time being.

"Honestly, right now, that sounds pretty good." Sonic said.

"I'll prescribe something to help you relax, in the mean time, take things slow, I know that may be difficult for you, but trust me, it's for your own good." Tails told him.

"Thanks buddy." Sonic thanked him and walked out of the office.

 _"I knew I could count on him." Sonic thought._

So, for a time, Shadow would be gone.

But the thing about something wanting to survive, sometimes, they come back with a vengeance.


	6. Disconnect

**Hey, just wanted to say thanks for the reception I've received since last time, doing this story is a bit of a challenge but it's worth it. Thank you all.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

A couple of days had passed and for Sonic, things seemed to have calmed down a bit.

While the stress and fear were still present, Sonic had managed to control his jitteriness and relax a little.

With this time to himself away from that lifestyle, he did miss one thing he used to love, writing.

He had forgotten how much he loved it before he had achieved success or to put it properly, before Shadow had achieved success.

But now, with more ideas coming back to him and the overall boredom getting to him, he had begun to write a follow up to his first hit.

As he worked away on his typewriter, he found himself sometimes not even thinking but still typing away, the story flowing nicely, at one point even falling asleep for a couple of minutes and still typing up the story.

Sonic shrugged it off as, he was merely in the right mindset.

As the morning turned to the afternoon and then evening, Sonic had finally decided to give it a rest, getting up from the chair, leaving the desk.

Sonic's fingers were still typing away as he walked over to his couch to watch something.

Sonic laughed a little in amusement.

 _"Guess I was working harder than I thought." Sonic thought._

Sonic focused and managed to get control of his hands back, stretching out his arms due to the discomfort.

Sonic turns on his television, flipping through channels, finding nothing that interested him.

Sonic sighed, turning his head to notice the number one on his answering machine.

Pressing the button, he began to feel a headache growing as he heard Nack's voice on the machine.

"Hey, I don't know where you've been or what you've been up to, but you've got a job to do, you're booked for up to thirty book signings, so get up here now or your contract is terminated!" Nack threatened.

Sonic sighed, as he had not fully realized the difficulties in moving away from that part of his life.

 _"I need an excuse for Shadow to be gone for a little awhile, and fast." Sonic thought._

Sonic thought it over for a moment, trying to think how Shadow would handle a situation.

He didn't want to change into Shadow again for his own sake, so that option was out.

After a little more time had passed, he settled on a handwritten letter, using Shadow's style of handwriting, knowing they would have to match it to his contract.

As he finished the letter, he knew it would take too long if he sent it by mail.

That's when he got the idea.

 _"They don't know me." Sonic thought._

He would be the one to deliver it.

 _"I hope this works." Sonic thought._

* * *

 **The Next Day.**

Sonic walked up the building he had never been to as himself, looking around, finally being able to admire the décor and atmosphere of the place, it was almost like a fancy hotel.

"May I help you?" Someone asked.

Sonic turned to see Amy at the front desk.

Sonic smiled and walked over to her.

"Hey, Amy." Sonic said.

"Do I know you?" Amy asked.

Sonic, realizing he had slipped up already, thought up a lie as quick as he could.

"Oh, no, Shadow just told me about you." Sonic told her.

"Wait, you know Shadow?" Amy asked, in surprise.

"Y-yeah, were roommates." Sonic lied again.

"Can I ask you something?" Amy asked.

"Sure." Sonic said.

"What did he say about me?" Amy asked.

"Oh, well, he said that you were an amazing woman, beautiful, funny, a pleasure to be around, that kind of stuff." Sonic told her, as he admired her.

"Then why hasn't he called me?" Amy asked, obviously saddened.

Sonic immediately felt bad for his mistake.

 _"Note to self, call Amy as Shadow after this." Sonic thought._

"He's just been busy, but I'll be sure to let him know." Sonic told her.

Amy smiled and thanked him.

"You seem nice, oh, I almost forgot, what are you here for?" Amy asked.

"Right, well, Shadow wanted me to deliver this letter to a Mr. Nack The Weasel." Sonic said.

"Oh, I can have someone run that right up there." Amy said.

"Sorry, but Shadow said something about me hand delivering it, something about seeing the look on Nack's face when he read it." Sonic told her, trying to make it seem like something that Shadow would want.

"Oh, then go right ahead." Amy told him, his plan obviously had worked.

"Floor 4, second door to the left." Amy told him.

"Thank you." Sonic said with a smile.

Sonic headed up, using the stairs to save time.

Reaching the door, he knocked, the door immediately opening, revealing an angry looking weasel.

"Who are you?" Nack asked, in annoyance.

"Hi, I'm Sonic." Sonic said, nervously.

"What do you want, I'm busy?" Nack asked.

"Shadow asked me to deliver this to you." Sonic said, handing him the letter.

Nack snatched it from his hands and tore it open.

"Mr. Weasel, while I appreciate the lengths you are going to, to ensure my success, I don't do public events. I humored you once with an appearance and evidently that was mistake. I do apologize to your staff if this causes them any inconvenience, however I wish to remain a recluse, I will submit my manuscripts through a messenger from now on and will receive my paychecks through this system as well. My acquaintance Sonic shall handle this duty. If you have any questions, he will answer them and I thank you for your time, signed, Shadow The Hedgehog." Nack read aloud.

Sonic smiled for a moment, proud of his plan.

This way he could remain Sonic while still keeping the Shadow persona alive.

However, as he had thought, Nack wasn't too happy about the situation.

"Just who does this guy think he is?!" Nack ranted.

He turned his sight towards Sonic.

Nack stormed over to him and grabbed him by the collar.

"Tell your friend we've spent a lot of time and money promoting his stupid book and that we aren't going to let him get away with this." Nack told Sonic.

"I don't think he'll listen." Sonic said, nervously.

Nack growled and let Sonic go.

Nack sighed, his migraine only getting worse from this news.

"Tell him to do whatever he wants, I don't care, he keeps shelling out books, then whatever." Nack gave up, not even wanting to deal with this.

Sonic nodded and went to leave.

"Just glad I don't have to see his ugly face again." Nack added.

Sonic stopped upon hearing this.

"What?" Sonic said, sounding a bit more stern.

"Yeah, the guy wasn't exactly a looker, plus he's a coward, can't even bring himself to walk up here and tell me his demands himself." Nack insulted.

Sonic fists quickly curled up, Sonic doing everything to hide his anger.

"If you ask me, the guy is a pushover, a weakling, I bet I could take him on, one on one." Nack bragged.

Sonic smirked.

"Is that so?" Sonic asked.

Nack grinned and nodded yes, sitting triumphantly at his desk.

"Well then, I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Sonic said, his voice going a bit deeper with that last sentence but not to the point of Shadow's.

Sonic walked out, anger now evident from his expression.

As he walked down the stairs, a thought in the back of his mind presented itself, Sonic not even realizing he was thinking at all at the moment.

 _"You really shouldn't have said that."_


	7. Unaware

_Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Amy had been waiting by the phone for about an hour.

She had immediately rushed home from work, expecting Shadow to call her.

She sat there, looking at it in anticipation of the ringing, so excited at first.

Then after awhile, she started pacing, still waiting by the phone.

Now she was staring, worried that he wouldn't call.

 _"Maybe I was too forward, he did seem a bit uninterested." Amy thought, recalling their night together, realizing that he had never kissed her back._

 _"The way his friend talked, it didn't seem like something Shadow would say…that's it!" Amy thought._

 _"Shadow probably got sick of me, so he sent his friend to break the news, Sonic probably was just trying to let me down easy." Amy thought, her anxiety leading to her thinking of one of the worst case scenarios._

Just when her nervousness hit its peak, the phone rang, startling her.

Amy lunged at the phone, picking it up immediately and pushed the answer button.

"Hello?" Amy said.

"Amy, it's Shadow." She heard on the line.

"Shadow, hey." Amy said.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier, I've just been busy, you know?" Shadow apologized.

"Totally." Amy responded.

"Well, as long as I have you on the line, I was wondering if you wanted to go out this weekend?" Shadow asked.

"Of course!" Amy said, enthusiastically.

Amy quickly calmed down and answered again.

"I mean, sure, where to?" Amy asked.

"Just a little place I know." Shadow answered, vaguely.

"Okay, I'll stop by your place tomorrow night." Amy said.

"Perfect." Shadow said.

"Okay, see you then." Amy said, then hung up the phone.

Amy, as soon as she put down the phone, had a big smile on her face, just thinking about her date.

Little did she know, who she was really talking to that whole time.

* * *

 **Meanwhile.**

Sonic put down the phone, breathing a sigh of relief.

He had been thankful he had gotten through that conversation without slipping up or accidentally going back to his normal voice.

Nonetheless, he was just as excited for the date as she was.

 _"I hope it goes well." Sonic thought, really wanting to impress her._

 _"It doesn't matter." Another thought came to mind._

 _"What?" Sonic thought._

 _"It doesn't matter what you do, you're not the one she fell for." A voice in his head told him._

Sonic assumed it was just his doubt getting the better of him, just arguing with himself and doubting his actions, second guessing himself like he always did.

 _"Well…maybe, but, she still likes me…kind of." Sonic thought._

 _"Don't be so sure, what are you gonna do if she wants a relationship?" The other side asked._

 _"What do you mean?" Sonic asked._

 _"I mean, you can't keep this act up forever, sooner or later, she's going to find out it was all a lie, then what will you say, sorry Amy, I was just pretending to be someone else this whole time, the guy you fell in love with, yeah, he doesn't exist?" The other voice asked, mocking him._

Sonic sighed, seeing his point.

 _"So what should I do?" Sonic asked._

 _"You got two options, the first is that you tell her the truth and she either doesn't believe you or dumps you on the spot and never forgives you." The voice said._

 _"What's the other?" Sonic asked._

 _"Act horribly towards her, make her dump you, then pursue her as yourself." The voice suggested._

As better as the second option sounded, Sonic was still hesitant.

It was still dishonest and he hated the thought of acting so cold towards Amy.

 _"Think of it this way, once it's over and done with, you'll finally have that girlfriend you've been wanting." The voice said._

Sonic was still on the fence about the idea, but couldn't argue with the fact that it could solve his problem.

 _"Sometimes, the easy way out is the best way." The voice said._

"Yeah." Sonic said, yawning from exhaustion.

"Woah, it's getting a bit harder to stay awake." Sonic said, looking at the clock to see it was still early.

 _"Maybe some sleep will help a little." Sonic thought._

Sonic walked to his room, falling into his bed, sleep instantly overtaking him.

While his conscious mind had slipped into a dream state, he was unaware of another voice speaking.

 _"That's it, rest easy Sonic, now it's my turn." The voice said._

* * *

 **Later.**

As midnight arrived, the last of the people working overtime at AGES publishing, had begun to leave, leaving Nack by himself.

Nack had finished up the last of his work for the day, locking up his office and then headed down to the parking lot.

The parking lot was completely empty, save for Nack's car, dimly lit in a disgustingly green glow.

Nack walked over to his car, going to unlock it, but dropping the keys.

As went to pick them up, he thought he had heard a noise.

Turning around, he saw nothing, just the empty lot.

He smirked at himself, figuring he was just hearing things.

As he picked up the keys, he stood back up, falling back with a shout of fear as he saw someone in the reflection of his window.

Nack turned around, seeing someone standing by the elevator, Shadow himself.

Nack sighed in relief.

"Oh, Shadow, it's just you." Nack said, chuckling while trying to catch his breath.

Shadow remained silent, simply glaring at him.

"Gave me a bit of a scare there, thought you said you were a recluse?" Nack said.

Shadow started to walk forward, making his way towards Nack, his feet dragging along the concrete as he did.

Nack realized Shadow wasn't exactly happy at the moment.

"What's up?" Nack asked.

"You wanted a one on one match, you got it." Shadow said.

Nack backed away a bit in fear, realizing what he meant.

 _"That friend of his must have told him what I said about him." Nack figured._

"Hey Shadow, take it easy, I was just kidding." Nack lied, trying to save himself.

"That's funny, because from what I know, you think I'm a coward, now I can't have you thinking that, now can I?" Shadow asked.

"Hey, you've already proven your point, you're definitely braver than me, so why don't we just forget this whole thing, okay?" Nack suggested, quickly trying to unlock the car.

Shadow pushed him back, knocking the keys out of his hand.

Nack whimpered in horror, from the hedgehog.

"Let this be a lesson to you." Shadow said.

The next second, all throughout the parking lot, was the echo of screaming.


	8. Becoming The Bad Guy

**Hey everyone. Welcome back, I got some more reviews, favorites and follows since last time, so thank you all for that. Well, when we last left off, Shadow had lashed out and presumably done some damage, let's see what happened. Hope you all enjoy.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

 **The Next Morning.**

Sonic awoke with an odd feeling of bliss, having had the best night's sleep he'd had in awhile.

Getting out of bed, he had a smile on his face the whole time.

Sonic went to the bathroom to get ready, he was going to see Amy at her job.

 _"You're just getting the check and leaving." The voice in his head pointed out._

 _"I know, but she's gonna be there and I want to look my best." Sonic thought, as he combed his quills._

 _"Just remember the plan." The voice reminded him._

Sonic headed down the stairs and as he entered the lobby, Jet stopped him.

"What's up?" Sonic asked.

"I want in." Jet said.

"What?" Sonic said in confusion.

"I know you don't have a job, so wherever you're getting the money from, I want in." Jet told him.

Sonic's eyes darted away for a moment, the stress coming back again.

"Look, Jet, I'm not up to anything, I just got help from a friend, that's all." Sonic lied.

"Some friend." Jet said, in an amused tone, not believing him.

"Whatever." Sonic said as he walked away.

As Sonic got into his car and drove away, his nervousness built up more and more.

Jet, in a way, was catching on to the charade and at this rate, more people would start to notice sooner or later.

 _"How am I going to get out of this?" Sonic thought, in worry._

Sonic turned on the radio to distract himself, hoping it would drown out the thoughts.

As he arrived at the publishing headquarters, Sonic walked in, only to see everyone looking somewhat distraught and afraid.

Sonic looked over at the front desk, thankful that Amy seemed to be acting like her usual self.

"Hey, Amy." Sonic said.

"Hey, Sonic." Amy said with a huge smile.

"You seem happy." Sonic pointed out.

"Yep, Shadow called me and asked me out on a date tonight." Amy said.

"That's great, I hope you two have fun." Sonic said, feeling a bit guilty for what he would have to do later.

"I hope so too, I've only ever been on one date before and he left me halfway through so he could go out with some other woman." Amy told him.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Sonic said.

"Don't be, after that I learned that I have to be patient and wait for the one." Amy said.

Sonic nodded in agreement.

With the guilt growing, Sonic decided to change the subject.

"Why is everyone on edge today?" Sonic asked.

"They're all scared after what happened last night." Amy said.

"Last night?" Sonic asked.

"Shadow didn't tell you?" Amy questioned.

"Nack was attacked here, last night." Amy told him.

Upon hearing this, images flashed in Sonic's mind.

Images of being in the dimly lit parking lot, a screaming Nack and finally, pulling out what looked to be glass in his palms.

"Hey, are you okay?" Amy asked as she watched Sonic just stand there with a blank expression on his face.

Sonic's head shook as he snapped out of it.

"Yeah, just drifted off for a second there." Sonic said.

"Anyways, I better get the check and get back home, Shadow can be a bit impatient." Sonic said.

"Tell him I'm looking forward to tonight." Amy asked of him.

"Will do." Sonic said, as he walked off.

As he went up the stairs, another spike of nervousness hit.

 _"What did I do?!" Sonic thought, in a panic._

 _"What you had to, he opened his big mouth and you were the one who shut him up." The voice tried to convince him._

 _"But he didn't deserve that." Sonic thought._

Sonic reached the office door, opening it, hoping Nack was alright.

As he walked in, he heard someone shout in fear and cower away.

Sonic looked over, seeing Nack backing away before Nack realized he wasn't in any kind of danger.

"Oh, it's you." Nack said, now more angry.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing up here, after what you did." Nack said, now acting tougher.

"What did I do?" Sonic asked, defensively.

"I know you told Shadow about what I said, the only reason I don't take it out on you is because for some reason, you're friends with that lunatic." Nack told him.

Nack took a seat at his desk, winding in pain.

Sonic noticed this, finally seeing the effects of what had happened to Nack that night.

Nack's fingers had been broken, now misshaped, covered in bandages and a few spots of crimson seeping through.

"Admiring your friend's work?" Nack asked.

"No, just kind of shocked." Sonic said.

"Word of advice, get as far away from that guy as possible." Nack told him.

"Believe me, I've been trying." Sonic said as he picked up the check.

"Hope you heal soon." Sonic said before leaving.

* * *

 **Later that night.**

Sonic had given his address to Amy as Shadow, awaiting her outside.

Shadow sighed, feelings of nausea overtaking him.

This day had not been kind to him and now, he would have to be the unkind one.

Amy walked up to his car and got in, Shadow noticing Amy in a different outfit than usual.

"It's great to see you again Shadow." Amy said.

As he was about to compliment her, he stopped himself, remembering what he had to do.

"Whatever." Shadow said, in a disinterested tone.

Amy looked at him, a bit disappointed by his statement, but put it aside as she turned her focus to the destination.

"So, where is this place exactly?" Amy asked.

"It's just this place down a couple of blocks." Shadow told her.

Amy wondered where they were going and after a couple minutes, they arrived.

Shadow got out of the car and went inside, not even helping Amy out.

Amy looked up the sign, realizing she was heading into a bar.

Amy started to twitch in fear a bit, forcing herself to get out of the car and walk in, with one thought on her mind.

 _"What have I gotten myself into?"_


	9. Double Date

**Shadow has put his plan into effect. How will Amy deal with him? What will Sonic do?**

 **Time to find out.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

As Amy walked in, she kept her line of sight at the floor, as others there were eyeing her up and whistling at her, obviously with less than pure intentions.

Amy took a seat next to Shadow, who was somehow already at his second drink.

Amy cleared her throat to get his attention, Shadow rolling his eyes and signaling the bartender.

Shadow ordered her a drink without even asking what she wanted and continued to drink down his own.

 _"What's going on, he wasn't like this before?" Amy questioned._

Not knowing how to handle the situation, Amy decided to just start making small talk.

"So, how've you been?" Amy asked.

Shadow looked at her, gave her an unamused look, then went back to ignoring her.

Amy growing a bit frustrated, decided to speak out.

"Okay, what gives, you've been giving me nothing but attitude since I showed up?" Amy questioned him.

 _"Show time." Shadow thought._

Shadow turned to her with an irritated look on his face.

But then, he started to chuckle at her.

"You think I want to be here?" Shadow asked, rhetorically.

Amy looked at him, confused.

"The only reason I'm here is because I owe Sonic and for some reason, he didn't want me to hurt your feelings." Shadow told her.

"I can't believe he made up some lie about me saying how sweet and beautiful you are, it makes me sick." Shadow told her.

Amy's emotions started to surface, her eyes starting to water.

 _"All this time…he didn't care." Amy thought._

"I hate to break it to you, but you're not my type." Shadow added on.

At that point, Amy started to grow outraged.

"How dare you!" Amy shouted, gaining everyone's attention.

"If you didn't want to go out with me, you could've just said so and acted like a decent Mobian instead of just being a coward!" Amy ranted.

Everyone started cheering her on as she stood up for herself, however they were all silenced as Shadow tripped Amy and smashed the bar's television to spite them.

"Watch your mouth." Shadow threatened.

"Honestly, I don't know what he was thinking, Sonic was an idiot for trying to let you down easy." Shadow said.

Amy picked herself up and glared at him.

"At least he cared enough to think about me, at least he was compassionate and kind." Amy told him.

"Well, then maybe you should be out with him." Shadow told her.

"Maybe I should." Amy said, softly.

Amy started to remember Sonic's kind words, realizing they had been his own.

"You don't have to deal with me anymore, just take me home." Amy said.

"Not a chance, you don't want to be here anymore, you can walk." Shadow told her.

Amy looked at him, going to speak before holding it back and simply walked out.

Amy shivered as the night grew colder, her house a bit of a ways away.

Amy began her walk home.

Meanwhile, Shadow entered the bar bathroom, quickly using the water from the sink to rinse the dye off.

 _"That went a bit too far, I didn't want to hurt Amy like that." Sonic thought._

 _"A necessary move in the process of getting her to be yours." The other voice told him._

 _"Still, it was a bit harsh." Sonic thought._

The last of the dye had been rinsed off, Sonic exiting the bar and taking the shortcut home to use his old car.

 _"Okay, now to pick up Amy." Sonic thought._

Sonic drove down the road, looking out for Amy and eventually finding her, pacing slowly.

She was barely able to move due to the cold and she wasn't even half way home.

Sonic pulled up the car and rolled down the window.

"Amy!" Sonic called out to her.

Amy turned to see Sonic, both surprised and relieved to see a friendly face.

"Need a lift?" Sonic asked.

Amy nodded and Sonic helped her into the car.

"T-thank you." Amy stuttered, still freezing.

"You're welcome." Sonic said.

Just then, Amy's stomach started to growl loudly.

Sonic held back his laughter and looked at her with a smile.

"I take it you're hungry?" Sonic asked.

"Yeah, I didn't eat lunch, I figured Shadow would be taking me out to dinner." Amy told him.

"Tell you what, we'll stop by my place, you can get out of the cold and I can get you something to eat." Sonic offered.

Amy agreed and Sonic brought her back to the apartment.

As Sonic and Amy walked in, Jet walked out to the lobby, noticing them.

"Well, well, well, looks like blue boy's got himself a girlfriend." Jet said.

Amy blushed while Sonic just cringed.

"She's just a friend Jet, we haven't really talked much." Sonic told him.

"Yeah, sure." Jet said, sarcastically.

"Come on, the apartment is upstairs." Sonic said.

"Taking her to your room already, didn't know you had it in you, blue." Jet said.

Amy's blush grew, Sonic quickly taking her upstairs.

 _"You should probably get him back for that later." The voice told Sonic._

 _"Maybe." Sonic thought._

Sonic unlocked the door and welcomed her inside.

"Make yourself at home." Sonic said.

Amy walked in, taking a seat on the couch as Sonic went to kitchen to get her something to eat.

As Sonic returned with the food, he saw Amy staring at the door, looking intimidated.

As if knowing what she was thinking, Sonic tried to put her mind at ease.

"He won't be home for a while." Sonic said.

Amy turned to look at him, being reassured by his welcoming personality.

"He's at a bar, so he won't be home until morning." Sonic told her.

Amy breathed a little sigh of relief at those words and began to eat.

As Amy ate, she glanced at Sonic every chance she had.

Sonic seemed to be the polar opposite of Shadow, and even despite not knowing her, he still had the kindness in his heart to try and help her with the Shadow situation as well as help her in her current situation.

Even if it was just admiration, Amy wanted to be closer to him.

As the night went on, Amy and Sonic hung out, finding they had a lot in common.

Sonic, everyone once in awhile would offer to take her back home, but Amy would just say that she wished to stay a little longer each time.

Sonic didn't mind at all.


	10. True Intent

**Well, it seems like Sonic's plan was a success and it looks like everything is going his way.**

 **Let's see where all this inevitably goes wrong.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

 **That Morning.**

Sonic and Amy had fallen asleep in the living room, Amy being the first to wake up.

Amy's eyes slowly opened, the first thing she saw, being the blue hedgehog himself.

She smiled, remembering the previous night and how he was in a weird way, her savior.

Amy looked around, in fear that Shadow had returned home last night, but was relieved when she found no trace of him.

She couldn't understand how someone as sweet as Sonic could live with someone so cold and rude.

 _"It'd be nice to have someone like him around." Amy thought._

Granted, Amy knew this place wasn't exactly a five star hotel, but Amy figured they were trying to save for more important things.

Which lead Amy to a different question.

 _"What did Sonic do for a living?" Amy wondered._

Sonic awoke with a yawn, seeing Amy already awake.

"Good morning." Sonic said.

"G-good morning." Amy stuttered.

Sonic got up from the floor, looking over at the clock, almost gasping in surprise.

"Oh no, you're gonna be late for work!" Sonic told her.

Amy looked at the time, realizing it was ten minutes before she had to clock in.

They scrambled down the stairs, rushed into the car and Sonic stepped on the gas, speeding down the road.

Sonic had never driven so fast in his life, in a weird way, it almost seemed natural to him.

Amy was a little nervous, both from the driving and the fear of having to deal with the higher ups if she was late again.

But, to her amazement, Sonic pulled the car up to the curb, with two minutes to go.

Sonic got out and opened her door, Amy booking it out of there as soon as he did.

As she ran to the front door, she stopped and looked back.

Smiling, she ran back, turning him to face her, she kissed him.

Sonic was in shock, overwhelmed by different emotions.

Amy broke the kiss, putting her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you." She whispered.

She giggled as she saw Sonic was a blushing mess, giving him one more kiss on the cheek before heading in to work.

Amy got to her desk right as the clock turned to eight.

 _"Right on time." Amy thought, as she breathed a sigh of relief._

Meanwhile, Sonic had snapped out of it, now driving back to his apartment to get his other car keys.

Sonic couldn't help but grin, his plan had worked perfectly.

 _"I told you, now you can date her all you want, no complications." That voice in his head told him._

 _"Yeah, I still feel bad about tricking her though." Sonic thought._

 _"It'll pass, besides, now that that's over with, Shadow's free to do whatever he wants." The voice said._

 _"What do you mean?" Sonic thought._

 _"It means, while you have Amy, Shadow will be able to have his own fun with whoever he wants." The voice said._

 _"The whole point was about getting rid of Shadow, getting him out of the public eye and away from everyone else." Sonic thought._

The voice in his head laughed, Sonic beginning to worry about what was going on.

 _"You can never be rid of me." The voice said._

Sonic began to have a panic attack, starting to sweat and twitch, the wheel slipping out of his hands as everything grew distant.

Sonic began to breath faster, his arms going numb as he tried to get control back.

As he put his hands the wheel, he looked up, right as a car was about to crash into him.

He reacted quickly, barely able to get out of the way, almost spinning out of control.

Sonic drove the car to the side, putting it to a stop and parking it.

Sonic got out, collapsing on the sidewalk, almost unable to keep consciousness.

As he lay there, he realized who he had been arguing with this whole time.

It wasn't himself, he finally had recognized that voice.

"Shadow." He croaked.

After holding on for a few more moments, Sonic slipped into a deep sleep.

* * *

 **Later.**

Sonic awoke, gasping for air.

As he looked around, he realized he was in his own room.

Sonic darted his sight to the clock, reading five o'clock PM.

He practically slept through the day.

 _"How did I get here?" Sonic thought._

Sonic looked around for any sign of a note, something to indicate that someone had found him and taken him home.

He got out of bed and took a look around, searching over his apartment.

As Sonic got to the bathroom, he rinsed his face with water, thinking it would help calm him down.

As he dried his face off with a towel, his vision was greeted to a familiar sight.

He jumped back in shock, his back hitting the door.

His body was covered in the black fur dye, his quills combed up.

"Shadow." Sonic said.

He remembered the voice, what happened in the car and then passing out.

However, he couldn't remember anything after.

He ran out of the bathroom, looking out the window to see both of his cars parked outside.

He started to notice his back was itchy, going to scratch and finding paper attached to it.

Pulling off the different slips, he read each one, all with different women's names and phone numbers.

 _"What did I do?" Sonic thought._

 _"Nothing." Shadow said._

Sonic began to panic, his heart rate going up.

 _"Calm down, I'm no threat to you, at least, not yet." Shadow said._

Sonic took a seat on the couch.

 _"What did you do?" Sonic asked, in a threatening manner._

 _"I lived my life." Shadow told him._

From there, Sonic picked up the phone to dial Tails, realizing that the situation as well as his own condition was more serious than he thought.


	11. A Chance Meeting

**It's been awhile since I updated this one, but, with the new year here, it's time to get this story back on track.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Sonic paced around nervously, still covered in dye, stuck as Shadow for a little bit until Tails would arrive.

An empty feeling in the pit of his stomach, along with barely being able to catch his breath weren't helping.

 _"It's alright, Tails will show up, I'll explain the situation and he can get me the help I need." Sonic tried to assure himself._

A knock at the door alerted him.

 _"That was quick." Sonic thought._

Sonic opened the door, revealing someone he had hoped wouldn't have ever seen him like this.

"Shadow?" Amy said, in surprise.

Sonic cleared his throat, preparing to put on his act.

"What are you doing here?" Shadow asked, Sonic putting an unwelcoming attitude into his tone.

"I came by to see Sonic." Amy said.

"Why would you want to see him?" Shadow questioned.

"Not that it's any of your business, but, we're going out." Amy said, with hostility towards him.

Shadow just chuckled, smirking with an amused delight.

"I didn't think you'd actually go out with him, you really must be desperate." Shadow mocked her.

Amy glared at him, the anger inside her building up whenever he spoke.

"Well, not that this hasn't been fun or anything, but I have company coming, so get out of my place." Shadow ordered her.

"I'm not leaving, I came here to see Sonic." Amy said.

Shadow growled, Sonic coming up with a lie, quickly.

"He's at work, he won't be home for another two hours." Shadow said.

"I can wait." Amy said, taking a seat on the couch, crossing her arms, as if to say that she wasn't going to listen to him.

Shadow started to make noises out of frustration, immediately walking out of the room.

He entered the bathroom and turned on the shower, washing the dye off.

 _"This is more complicated than I thought." Sonic thought._

 _"She's nothing but a nuisance." Shadow thought._

 _"The sooner I get rid of you, the better." Sonic thought._

 _"You think that Tails guy can help?" Shadow questioned._

 _"Not a chance, I'm much more than a psychological problem my friend, so much more." Shadow thought._

Sonic cringed at his statement, shaking his thoughts off as he exited the shower.

Sonic, knowing he couldn't exit out the bathroom, opened up the window, sneaking outside.

While this was going on, Amy was still waiting around, eagerly awaiting Sonic's arrival.

As if by chance, a knock on the door alerts her.

"Sonic, it's me." Someone says.

Amy answers the door, seeing a fox standing there with a clipboard in hand.

"Oh, hello, sorry to bother you, I must have the wrong place." He said.

"No, you're alright, sorry, Sonic isn't here right now, Shadow said he's at work." Amy mentions.

"Shadow?" The fox said, confused.

"Yeah, Shadow the hedgehog, Sonic's roommate, you must've read his book." Amy says.

He nods his head no.

"Sorry, I've never heard of him, still…Sonic never mentioned having a roommate." He told her.

"That's strange." Amy said.

"Yeah, oh, sorry, where are my manners?" He uttered, holding out his hand for her to shake.

"I'm Miles, Miles Prower, but my friends call me Tails." He introduced himself.

Amy shook his hand, a smile forming on her face due to his welcoming nature.

"I'm Amy, Amy Rose." She introduced herself.

"Pleasure to meet you." Miles said.

Amy welcomed him in, hoping Shadow wouldn't scare him off.

"So, who is this Shadow guy?" Miles asked.

"He's an arrogant, pompous author." Amy said, surprising Tails with her sudden shift in emotion.

"I take it you two aren't on good terms?" Tails said.

"Pretty much." Amy said.

"It's funny though, Sonic's an author as well." Tails said.

"Really?" Amy said, in surprise.

"Yeah, it was his dream to become a famous writer, it's kind of a shame he hasn't gotten a break, he's put so much time and devotion into his works." Tails told her.

Amy was stunned, she had no idea.

"Wow, I didn't know." Amy said.

"Yeah, we've been friends since we were kids, even back then, he always had his attention on his novels, whether it was reading or writing." Tails said.

"It's nice to meet one of Sonic's friends." Amy said.

"Yeah, speaking of which, how do you know Sonic?" Tails asked.

"Oh, I'm his." Amy started speaking, interrupted by none other than the blue hedgehog himself, walking into the room.

Sonic was about to speak, but stopped, suddenly noticing Tails' presence.

 _"Oh no." Sonic thought._

 _"Let's see you get out of this one." Shadow taunted._

Shadow's mocking laughter echoed in his mind, torturing Sonic as the stress was rising.


	12. Much Needed Confessions

**It appears that Sonic's complications have only gotten worse. But, he's gotten himself into this mess, so surely he can get himself out, or in this case, his other self.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Sonic stood there, frozen from being overwhelmed, for a good five seconds.

He had to handle his current situation quickly or risk having this situation end badly.

He mentally clocked out and just started speaking, hoping what would come out, would be enough.

"Hey, I see you two have met." Sonic started.

"Yeah, Tails was just telling me all about you." Amy said.

"Hopefully not too much." Sonic joked, with a little smirk.

"No, just about your dreams of being an author." Amy said.

"Really?" Sonic said, surprised that Tails would share that information with someone he didn't even really know.

"Yeah, I had no idea, you'll have to read me some of your manuscripts sometime." Amy said.

"I'd love to." Sonic said, bringing her in, wrapping his arm around her.

Tails made a fake coughing sound to get their attention.

"Not to be rude, but I take it you two are dating?" Tails asked.

"It's a bit more complicated, but to put it simply, yeah, we are." Sonic told him.

"Well, I'm glad to hear it, by the way, what did you call me up here for?" Tails asked.

"Oh, I was hoping I could ask you for some advice." Sonic said.

"Amy, could I talk with Tails alone for a minute?" Sonic asked.

"Sure, I'll be downstairs, come down when you're done." Amy said.

Amy kissed him on the cheek and left.

"So, what advice are we talking about here?" Tails asked.

"It's not advice, I lied." Sonic blurted out.

"Then what is it?" Tails asked.

"Okay, remember how I told you about some issues I was having?" Sonic asked.

"Yes." Tails replied.

"Well, situations have gotten a lot more complicated." Sonic told him.

"How so?" Tails asked.

"Alright, what I'm about to tell you has to be confidential, you can't tell anyone, especially Amy." Sonic said.

Tails looked at him, with both curiosity and concern.

"Very well then." Tails said.

"There's no Shadow." Sonic told him.

"What?" Tails asked, confused by his statement.

"My name was basically poison at all of the publishing companies, so I made up a fake name and disguised myself to get a job." Sonic said.

Tails just stood there stunned.

"After that, stuff started happening while I was unconscious, I woke up days apart from each time and I did things as Shadow that I can't even remember." Sonic continued.

Tails sat down, hanging on every word Sonic spoke.

"After awhile, I thought maybe if I could cut his identity out of my life, that things would go back to normal." Sonic said.

"I made an arrangement with the publishers and I made Shadow seem horrible to Amy so she would stop pursuing him." Sonic explained.

"After that, I thought it would be over, but I still hear his voice in my head, taunting me, mocking me, hurting me." Sonic said, grabbing at his quills.

"It's like he's there, actually speaking to me, I'm starting to lose it!" Sonic exclaimed.

"Easy there, calm down." Tails told him.

"It's obvious that this choice you made has had some seriously dangerous effects on your mental health." Tails said.

"You're suffering from paranoid delusions and from other details, a case of personality disorder." Tails told him.

Sonic's stress was growing by the second, one more mishap and he felt like he would snap.

"You need help, help that even I can't give you." Tails said.

Sonic began to twitch uncontrollably.

"Sonic, calm down." Tails said, grabbing Sonic by the shoulders.

"Alright, now look, I'm gonna go back to the office and make a few calls, tomorrow I want you to stop by my office, some people will be there to take you for treatments." Tails told him.

Sonic didn't respond, simply paralyzed in panic.

"You're going to be okay." Tails tried to reassure him.

Tails left immediately to return to his office.

Sonic sat there, sick to his stomach, unable to process what had just happened.

He had originally thought that confessing to someone would help him and that a weight would be lifted.

But instead, all he could feel was dread and of course, Shadow was there to take advantage of that.

 _"They're gonna lock you up and throw away the key." Shadow told him._

 _"He thinks you're insane, that you've lost your mind." Shadow said._

 _"Now, you go and have your fun with your girlfriend, then…I'll have my fun later." Shadow said._

With that, Sonic mindlessly walked out, joining Amy downstairs.

As Sonic drove Amy to their date, he remained unaware of Shadow's intent.


	13. Silenced

**It's time to see what Shadow has planned.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Tails had driven home that night, surrounded by the people of the city, the bright lights around every street corner.

Yet, he still felt alone and powerless.

He had felt a bit guilty about Sonic's current situation and how he didn't examine him further in any case of severity.

He had let Sonic down as a professional and as a friend.

He felt responsible and he was going to try his best to see that Sonic would be cured.

His had friends up at the institution and hopefully they could help Sonic recover.

As Tails reached the highway, he had finally taken notice of something odd.

Tails' car was the only one driving along that highway, save for one more car.

Tails looked in the rear view mirror, noticing that the car was familiar.

He tried to remember where he had seen it before, as it continued to follow behind him.

Tails' eyes widened as he realized where he had seen it before.

It had been parked outside the apartment complex where Sonic was.

The car had been trailing him from a town over.

How he had managed to find him, he didn't know and he had no intention of finding out.

Tails assessed the situation, thinking that maybe it was just his imagination.

 _"He doesn't seem to be passing me, despite the open space." Tails thought._

 _"I might be able to throw him off, if he follows, I'll know for sure and if he doesn't, then it was just all in my head." Tails planned out._

Tails exited off the highway, the opposite direction of his destination.

Tails knew how to get there from that point, but he figured whoever this was didn't.

Of course, the car continued to pursue him.

 _"Okay, let's lose this guy." Tails thought._

Tails stomped on the pedal, speeding off.

The tires squealed with each sharp turn, the mystery driver fading off into the distance with each maneuver.

Tails looked in the rear view mirror once more, noticing that the car was gone.

Tails looked out the window, just to be sure.

Nothing, he saw nothing, just empty block after empty block.

 _"I guess I lost him." Tails thought._

Not a second later, he would be proven wrong.

The car came barreling out of nowhere, colliding with him head on.

Tails' car was launched into the air, crashing to the ground, tumbling over and over until it finally stopped when it hit the side of a building.

Tails was lucky to have survived, as the car was now a wreck of metal and shattered glass.

Tails kicked the door open, causing it to fall off.

Tails began to crawl out, falling to the ground.

Tails checked himself for any serious injuries and aside from fatigue and a few scratches, he seemed to be fine.

Tails peered over at the mystery car.

The front had been smashed in, but the strangest thing of all.

There was no driver.

Tails' fear heightened, turning in every direction, to see if his attacker was in sight.

Once again it seemed that all was clear, but Tails was no fool.

Tails booked it, running from the scene, hoping he could get to his office, unharmed any further.

* * *

 **Later.**

Tails had eventually made it safely to his office, barging in and locking the door behind him, in a panic.

Tails breathed heavily as he rested his body against the door.

"It's about time you showed up, you're late for our appointment." Someone said.

Tails turned around, shocked by the presence of someone else.

There, stood in the corner, blending in with the darkness, was a hedgehog.

"Who are you?" Tails questioned.

"Come on Prower, you don't even recognize your old friend…well, at least his face." He pointed out.

"S-Sonic?" Tails stuttered.

The hedgehog chuckled.

"Not quite." The hedgehog said.

The hedgehog stepped out of the darkness and into the light shining through the window.

"The name is Shadow, I believe Amy told you about me." Shadow said.

Tails gulped, afraid for his life.

"She did, Sonic told me about you too." Tails said.

Shadow smirked, placing a hand on Tails shoulder as he did.

"Sonic doesn't know what he's talking about, that guy is as weak minded as they come." Shadow insulted Sonic.

"I'm as real as you are." Shadow said.

Tails wasn't sure how to react.

He had mentioned that it was Sonic's face, but Tails couldn't see Sonic anywhere, not even in his eyes.

 _"There's no way this can be him, either one of them is crazy or they're both crazy." Tails thought._

"Regardless, Sonic still needs help and I need to make a few calls." Tails mentioned.

Tails went to dial, finding the wire had been cut.

"That won't be necessary, he has all the help he needs from me." Shadow told him.

"Besides, you won't have to worry about that anymore." Shadow said.

In a split second, Tails' whole world had gone dark, the last two things he had heard, would echo for what seemed like forever.

Shadow's scream of rage and the sound of Sonic, crying out for help.


	14. Regrets

**It seems the matter of Shadow is more dangerous than anyone could have anticipated. The question is, what is the endgame?**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

That morning, Sonic awoke to someone pounding on his door, each knock he heard making his head ache.

Sonic quickly got out of bed to see what the commotion was about and upon opening the door, he was greeted by an officer and some guy in a suit.

"Mr. Hedgehog?" One of them asked.

"Yes." Sonic replied.

"I'm detective Espio, this is my associate, officer Mighty, we're here to ask you a few questions." Espio told him.

"Uh, sure, come on in." Sonic says, opening the door all the way for them to step inside.

Sonic went to the kitchen to get a drink, offering water to the two of them, to which they replied no.

"Mr. Hedgehog, is it true that yesterday you were in contact with a Miles Prower?" Espio asked.

Sonic mentally shuddered, fearing the worst case scenario.

"Yeah, I asked him to come over yesterday, why?" Sonic asked.

"We received a call this morning, his fiancé, Miss Mongoose informed us that he had visited." Espio told him.

"Is everything alright?" Sonic asked.

Espio gave him a look of uncertainty before telling him.

"Mr. Prower was found this morning in his office, he was found in critical condition and is currently in a coma." Espio informed him.

Sonic almost began to tear up, struggling to breath as the memories flashed in his mind.

"No." He said, in an almost whisper like tone.

"Mr. Hedgehog, where were you last night?" Espio asked.

"I was out on a date." Sonic said.

Espio took note.

"Mr. Hedgehog, we found a car downstairs that matches the description of the car identified at the wreckage scene, is that vehicle under your ownership?" Espio questioned.

"No, sir." Sonic told him.

"Do you know who it belongs to?" Espio asked.

"Which car is it?" Sonic asked.

"The black and red sports car." Espio said.

"Oh, that's Shadow's car, he's my roommate." Sonic lied.

"Can you contact him, we have a few questions for him as well?" Espio asked.

"I wish, the guy is as big a loner as you can get, no one has his number and he's barely ever around." Sonic lied.

"Well then, when he does return, tell him to come down to the station for questioning, you know the number in case he chooses not to cooperate." Espio said.

"Yeah." Sonic said.

With that, the two of them left, leaving Sonic to panic.

 _"What did you do?!" Sonic directed his thoughts at Shadow._

 _"What I had to, he was a threat." Shadow said._

 _"He was my friend." Sonic countered._

Sonic grabbed his jacket and his keys.

 _"What are you doing?" Shadow asked._

 _"I'm going to see Tails." Sonic said._

* * *

 **Later, at the hospital.**

Sonic walked into the room, seeing Mina sitting beside the bed Tails occupied, crying.

Mina got up and hugged Sonic, Sonic instantly feeling even more guilty as he comforted her.

"Sonic, please tell me you know who did this." Mina whimpered.

Sonic hesitated for a moment, not saying a word, his head hung low.

Finally, he answered.

"Yeah, I know who did this, and I'm going to see to it that they'll pay." Sonic exclaimed, his tone growing more menacing.

Mina stood back a bit in intimidation, but she understood why he felt this way, given the circumstances.

Sonic walked over to the bed.

"Mina, could you give me a minute?" Sonic asked.

"Of course." Mina said, leaving the room.

Sonic sighed and took a seat next to him.

"I'm sorry, I can't even begin to apologize for this, but I promise you, I'm going to make this right." Sonic vowed to him.

Sonic then took his leave, planning to fulfill his vow and ultimately bring this whole ordeal to an end.

 _"I know what you're thinking, you don't have to do this." Shadow told him._

 _"Oh trust me, I do." Sonic countered._

Sonic was going to turn himself in.

* * *

 **Later.**

Sonic returned to his home, locking the door behind him.

He had decided to take one last look around, before leaving it all behind.

Unfortunately for him, that wouldn't be an option.

The lights began to short out and eventually shut off.

Sonic quickly found a flashlight and began to dial Amy's number.

 _"She's never going to believe you." Shadow said._

 _"She doesn't have to, I just need to tell her." Sonic said._

 _"Well then, it appears I have to take action." Shadow said._

Immediately the phone line was cut, Sonic turning to look, only to be kicked in the face.

Sonic fell back, hitting the wall behind him.

Sonic tried to get back up, only to be knocked back down.

Sonic's vision began to grow blurry from the pain, however, he was still able to see that it was clearly another hedgehog.

"You couldn't leave well enough alone, could you?" The hedgehog stated.

"W-who are you." Sonic stuttered, wincing from pain.

The hedgehog chuckled and took a seat on the couch, the lights instantly flashing back on.

At that moment, a look of pure terror was on Sonic's face.

Sitting on that couch, staring back at him with a look of malice, was none other, than Shadow The Hedgehog.


	15. They Will Never Know

**This is it. The final chapter in this twisted story. It's been interesting and I thank you all for your continued support. Now, let's commence with the end.**

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Sonic The Hedgehog or any of the characters, they are owned by Sega and Sonic Team._

* * *

Impossible.

That was the word Sonic used to describe his current situation.

Sitting in front of him, was Shadow The Hedgehog, his creation.

"No." Was all Sonic could say.

"I'm afraid so." Shadow said.

"No, you're…you're not here, you're just another delusion." Sonic said.

"This delusion just showed you who's boss, you wanna explain that?" Shadow bragged.

Sonic took in a breath and stood up.

"It doesn't matter, I don't know who or what you really are, but I don't care, I'm gonna make sure that I have nothing to do with you ever again." Sonic told him.

Shadow just chuckled, his bones cracking as he stood up to face him.

"That can be arranged." Shadow said.

Shadow immediately lunges at Sonic, Sonic moving out of the way as quick as he could, running for his room.

 _"I make it out the window, I can get to my car." Sonic thought._

Sonic ran in and slammed the door shut, Shadow trying to break it down.

Sonic turned to the window, finding it had been locked from the outside.

"I thought of everything." Shadow said, still breaking down the door.

Sonic couldn't take much more, panicking to the point of dizziness.

That's when he noticed, the noise had stopped.

Sonic began to sweat, his body twitching, his skin going pale.

Sonic had taken one step, before two arms reached out from under his bed, grabbing him by the legs and dragging him under.

"No!" Sonic screamed at the top of his lungs.

Sonic flailed about, kicking his legs, hoping he would lose his grip.

Thankfully, he did.

Sonic broke free, looking back, only to find nothing under the bed at all.

Sonic could barely breath, as he crawled to a corner of the room, his back up against the wall.

He lay there, a whimpering mess.

"You're not real, you're not real." Sonic said, barely able to speak at all.

"Wrong again." Shadow said, in Sonic's mind.

Sonic couldn't take it anymore, his mind, body and soul being tortured by this monster.

Sonic jumped, crashing through the window, awaiting impact with the ground below.

Sonic had injured his leg upon the crash, but had survived.

Sonic limped to his car, finding it had been tampered with, the engine being completely wrecked.

Not thinking clearly, he headed towards Shadow's car, driving off into the streets at full speed.

Sonic looked like a madman as he drove, no longer concerned for his or anyone else's well being, simply driving to get away.

"Someone's on edge." Shadow said, appearing next to him in the passenger seat.

"Stop it!" Sonic screamed.

"You want this to end?" Shadow asked.

Sonic just kept driving, looking at Shadow with fear in his eyes.

"Very well then." Shadow said.

Shadow then grabbed the wheel, fighting against Sonic, causing the car to spin out of control.

The car began to tumble, crashing into everything in sight, flipping with each collision.

They had left nothing but pure destruction in their path, the two of them now heading towards their last stop.

"It seems this is where we part ways." Shadow said.

Sonic looked at him, that same question still on his mind.

"Who are you?" Sonic asked.

Shadow looked at him, a smirk on his face.

Shadow simply pointed to Sonic, as the car crashed.

* * *

 **Epilogue.**

That next morning, the reports had come in about the scene last night.

Investigators were called in, reports coming in that the car did indeed belong to famous author, Shadow The Hedgehog.

Many were surprised by this fact, however, more were surprised by the fact that no body was found at the crash sight.

A search was conducted to find the missing hedgehog, but ended with no results.

The investigation lead back to Sonic's apartment, however they had found no evidence.

Tails eventually awoke from his coma, having no memory of Sonic's confession or the events of that night.

Amy Rose had suffered greatly, hearing report after report on the case and how Sonic had gone missing as well.

She had feared Shadow had done something drastic and Sonic had become another victim.

In a way, she had been correct.

A few years had passed and the investigation was shut down.

The world had moved on.

While a few had memories of them, one thing was for certain.

Nobody ever found out the truth, not even Sonic.

No one would ever know.


End file.
